Amazon helped bolster the eReader craze
that is sweeping the globe today. Its Kindle wasn't the first
eReader, but the new features and pricing of the eReader combined
with the backing of the Amazon Digital Book store made the Kindle the
most appealing eReader to hit the market.

Amazon is actively
growing the library of digital book that are available on the device
and recently it upgraded the Kindle DX with global
wireless connectivity. Shortly after announcing the upgrade,
Amazon also announced that it was opening its Kindle Digital Text
Platform (DTP) to countries other than the U.S. and accepting books
in English, German, and French languages.

Amazon announced
today that it is now willing to share a higher
royalty fee with authors and publishers who use the DTP. The new
royalty fee is 70% of list price after removing delivery costs.
Amazon points out that the new 70% program is in addition to the
standard DTP royalty option already in place. The new 70% option will
be available for publishers starting on June 30.

Delivery
costs of the books are based on a price of $0.15 per MB meaning that
the average 368KB book would cost about six cents to deliver. Amazon
uses a book selling for $8.99 as an example. Under the current
program, a book selling for $8.99 will get the author $3.15 per sale;
the new program would get the author $6.25.

“Today, authors
often receive royalties in the range of 7 to 15 percent of the list
price that publishers set for their physical books, or 25 percent of
the net that publishers receive from retailers for their digital
books,” said Russ Grandinetti, Vice President of Kindle Content.
“We’re excited that the new 70 percent royalty option for the
Kindle Digital Text Platform will help us pay authors higher
royalties when readers choose their books.”

There are
numerous requirements to qualify for the new rate program. The price
must be between $2.99 and $9.99 per book. The price must also be at
least 20% below the price for a physical copy of the same book. The
book has to be published in all parts of the world where the author
or publisher has rights. The book has to be included in a broad range
of Kindle features. Books published before 1923 will not qualify for
the program and only books sold in America will be allowed in the
program.

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